[caption id="attachment_1734" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Mr. John Campbell, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy (WWCTP"]
Triad of Care professionals including primary care managers, nurse case managers, physical and occupational therapists, social workers, and transition coordinators gathered in Orlando, Florida this week for the
Warrior Transition Command Annual Conference. Also in attendance was Mr. John Campbell, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy (WWCTP), who offered opening remarks on Wednesday morning.
Mr. Campbell first thanked the attendees for the critical work they do on behalf of wounded warriors and their families.
“We hear it from senior leaders all the time—
General Chiarelli, former Secretary of Defense
Robert Gates and now from Secretary
Leon Panetta—that next to war fighting itself, the job of caring for our wounded warriors is the most important job there is, and I know that’s a fact,” Mr. Campbell said. “I know the challenges you face are matched only by the good work you do.”
Mr. Campbell urged attendees to be innovative in the way they address problems, and invited them to leverage existing solutions where possible. In particular, Mr. Campbell invited those in attendance to use WWCTP programs such as the
TAP Webinars and Recovery Care Coordinators wherever and whenever they can.
“Please remember that I am here to help and support you,” Mr. Campbell told the audience. “The programs my office oversees are designed specifically with wounded warriors and transitioning Service members in mind. Leverage them. Use them. Tell us how we can make them better. We want you to succeed because when you succeed, our wounded warriors succeed. After all they have done for us, that is truly the least we can do for them.”
He also emphasized the importance of, and shared responsibility to improve employment outcomes for wounded warriors and disabled veterans, a priority reiterated by
WTC Command General Williams and shared by all the Military Services. This generation of veterans is truly the best our country has to offer, Mr. Campbell said, and any company or organization will be permanently changed for the better by making veterans a part of their team.
“The skills and training they bring to the workplace are really unmatched,” Mr. Campbell said. “These are men and women who aren’t just out fighting wars. They are managing large-scale civil projects, negotiating with the local Imams, overseeing large groups of people under constrained budgets and doing it all in some of the most challenging—and dangerous—circumstances in the world. It is my opinion that there is no company or organization that would not be transformed by hiring veterans.”
Mr. Campbell concluded his remarks by emphasizing that, as the wars draw down and more and more Service members return to their families, their units and their communities, the work of care coordinators, care providers and caregivers is really just beginning.
“I am here to remind you that you are not alone,” Mr. Campbell said, “and that long after the guns are silenced, we have not succeeded if all of America does not hear the falling silence of the drums of war as a deafening call to action—a call to help lead our wounded warriors, the next greatest generation, into the classroom as teachers, into the board room as executives, into their communities as small business owners and entrepreneurs, and into the lives of all Americans as leaders in their communities, their government, and back to their military to help others along the way.”
Also in presenting at the conference was Mr. Bob Carrington, Director of
Recovery Care Coordination at WWCTP, who provided information to Army Transition Coordinators about the
Operation Warfighter program.